DoorKing 1838 Telephone Access Plus - Manual (Page 12)

1.5 Telephone Line Wiring (optional)
This section is provided for information purposes if the 1838 Access Plus controller will be
programmed via modem using a telephone line.
Be sure to observe electrical safety when working with phone lines. Phone lines carry electricity and
the ring voltage can deliver a substantial jolt. The best policy is to disconnect the phone line from the
phone company Network Interface Device (also known as ‘Demarcation Device’) before working on
the wiring.
In older homes and buildings, the phone cable contains four wires; green, red, black, yellow. The
green and red are twisted to make one pair and the black and yellow are twisted to make another pair
(This allowed for the addition of a second phone line since telephones use only two wires). Most
phone lines installed in the U.S. in the second half of the 20th Century have this type of wire. This
type of wire is now obsolete. All new telephone projects are using Cat5 wire. If you have Cat5 wiring,
the conversion is simple (see chart).
The convention for Cat5 wire is as follows:
Page 12 1838-066-D-1-12
Old Wiring
Four Conductor
Modern Wiring
Cat5e or Cat6
 Colored pairs match; e.g., WHITE with blue
mark goes with BLUE with white mark for one
phone line, etc.
 The pairs are used in the order pictured: for
the first line, you use BLUE, for the second
line you use ORANGE, etc.
 An easy way to remember this is that the
colors run from the sky to the earth. BLUE sky
comes first; ORANGE sunset second; GREEN
grass third; BROWN earth last.
"Tip" and "Ring" are common terms in the telephone service industry referring to the two wires or
sides of an ordinary telephone line. Tip is the ground side (positive) and Ring is the battery (negative)
side of a phone circuit. The ground side is common with the central office of the telephone company
(telco); the battery side carries -48 volts of DC voltage when in an "idle" or "on hook" state.
Phone Line Polarity. Tip and ring reversal is mostly immaterial, except for special circuits including
DID (Direct Inward Dialing) trunks, T-1 lines, and ground start lines where the field side ("terminal")
equipment (a company's PBX switch, for example) can only function correctly with correct tip and ring
polarity.
Tip 1 = WHITE / Blue Mark
Ring 1 = BLUE / White Mark
Tip 2 = WHITE / Orange Mark
Ring 2 = ORANGE / White Mark
Tip 3 = WHITE / Green Mark
Ring 3 = GREEN / White Mark
Tip 4 = WHITE / Brown Mark
Ring 4 = BROWN / White Mark
Red
Black
Yellow
Green